Lehmann Maupin is pleased to present an exhibition of new work by Jun Nguyen-Hatsushiba. This will be the artist’s second solo exhibition at the gallery. Best known for his films shot underwater, Nguyen-Hatsushiba examines the impact of globalization through the lens of Southeast Asia. For this exhibition, Jun Nguyen-Hatsushiba presents a new film, The Ground, the Root, and the Air: The Passing of the Bodhi Tree along with a spatial installation titled Garden of Globes that was shown at Kunstmuseum Luzern this year and Circus, a special installation inspired by the Festival of Light in Luang Prabang. Identified by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1995, Luang Prabang is an example of the fusion of tradition and colonization.

As part of The Quiet in the Land Project and shot in Laos with the participation of art students from the Luang Prabang School of Fine Arts, The Ground, the Root, and the Air: The Passing of the Bodhi Tree examines the region's various youth cultures as they try to achieve contemporary definitions of success without losing the essential roots of their heritage. The new film observes ambition for individual achievement as traditional values and customs are shifting in the minds of the youth. It becomes apparent that these shifts cannot be ignored in order to become a competitive society and the film attempts to capture this turbulent evolution. The Ground depicts a group of determined joggers running on a circular track in an open-air stadium. To create a dream-like experience, the “chapters” are interspersed in no recognizable sequence. In the interlude, entitled The Root, illusory images of traditional lanterns featured during the annual Festival of Light in Luang Prabang while in the final chapter, The Air, depicts the group of students drifting down the Mekong River amid the passing landscape. The site of the Bodhi Tree, a symbol of Buddhism, causes some to abandon their boats, a gesture indicative of these cultural controversies.